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NON-FICTION SELECTIONS
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NO WOMAN NO CRY
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Author:Rita Marley
A memoir by the woman who knew Bob Marley best--his wife, Rita.
Rita Marley grew up in the slums of Trench Town, Jamaica. Abandoned by her mother at a very young age, she was raised by her aunt. Music ran in Rita's family, and even as a child her talent for singing was pronounced. By the age of 18, Rita was an unwed mother, and it was then that she met Bob Marley at a recording studio in Trench Town. Bob and Rita became close friends, fell in love, and soon, she and her girlfriends were singing backup for the Wailers. At the ages of 21 and 19, Bob and Rita were married.
The rest is history: Bob Marley and the Wailers set Jamaica and the world on fire. But while Rita displayed blazing courage, joy, and an indisputable devotion to her husband, life with Bob was not easy. There were his liaisons with other women -- some of which produced children and were conducted under Rita's roof. The press repeatedly reported that Bob was unmarried to preserve his "image." But Rita kept her self-respect, and when Bob succumbed to cancer in 1981, she was at his side. In the years that followed, she became a force in her own right -- as the Bob Marley Foundation's spokesperson and a performer in her reggae group, the I-Three. Written with author Hettie Jones, No Woman No Cry is a no-holds-barred account of life with one of the most famous musicians of all time.
In No Woman No Cry, readers will learn about the never-before-told details of Bob Marley's life, including:
--How Rita practiced subsistence farming when first married to Bob to have food for her family.
--How Rita rode her bicycle into town with copies of Bob's latest songs to sell.
--How Rita worked as a housekeeper in Delaware to help support her family when her children were young.
--Why Rita chose to befriend some of the women with whom Bob had affairs and to give them advice on rearing the children they had with Bob.
--The story of the attack on Bob which almost killed the two of them.
--Bob's last wishes, dreams, and hopes, as well as the details of his death, such as who came to the funeral (and who didn't).
Retails:$22.95
Hardcover
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INSIDE A THUGS HEART
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Author:Angela Ardis
Tupac has been really busy putting out albums year after year since his untimely demise that is often debated. But, for those who believe he is still alive, he's taken the time to assemble some of his letters and poems just for you.
The rapper's newest book release "Inside A Thug's Heart," features exclusive letters and poems written during his incarceration at Rikers Island and Dannemora State Prison.
The book to be released May 4 and published with the approval of the Shakur estate, captures Tupac's vulnerability at a time when his public persona was at its most controversial.
Author Angela Ardis, an actress, model and screenwriter, sent a letter to the imprisoned rapper in 1995 on a dare from friends and coworkers. She was startled days later to receive an answering machine message: "Hi, Angela. This is Tupac. I got your letter today and I thought I'd call."
According to Ardis, the two would exchange near daily letters, poems and phone calls for the next several months, meeting for the first time when Ardis visited Shakur in prison.
In the poem "If Heaven Has a Ghetto" a track that would later appear on Tupac's posthumous R U Still Down? album, Shakur evaluates the prison experience and its effect on his legacy. In a letter dated March 17, 1995, Shakur writes a brief autobiography, describing his mother's heartbreaking struggle and his own rise to fame. Meanwhile, love poems such as "4 Those Nights When U R Alone" show Shakur's sensitive and emotional side.
Elsewhere, his letters reflect on the 1994 shooting, his arrest and conviction, and his dreams for the future. Ardis's responses in both poetry and prose are also featured here.
Retails:$21.00
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SLAVE:MY TRUE STORY
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Author:Mende Nazer
A shocking true story of contemporary slavery: a young girl, snatched from her tribal village in Africa, survives enslavement in Sudan and London before making a courageous escape to freedom.
Mende Nazer lost her childhood at age twelve, when she was sold into slavery. It all began one horrific night in 1993, when Arab raiders swept through her Nuba village, murdering the adults and rounding up thirty-one children, including Mende. .
Mende was sold to a wealthy Arab family who lived in Sudan's capital city, Khartoum. So began her dark years of enslavement. Her Arab owners called her "Yebit," or "black slave." She called them "master." She was subjected to appalling physical, sexual, and mental abuse. She slept in a shed and ate the family leftovers like a dog. She had no rights, no freedom, and no life of her own.
Normally, Mende's story never would have come to light. But seven years after she was seized and sold into slavery, she was sent to work for another master--a diplomat working in the United Kingdom. In London, she managed to make contact with other Sudanese, who took pity on her. In September 2000, she made a dramatic break for freedom.
Slave is a story almost beyond belief. It depicts the strength and dignity of the Nuba tribe. It recounts the savage way in which the Nuba and their ancient culture are being destroyed by a secret
Retails:$25.00
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FROM NIGGAS TO GODS
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Escaping Negativity & Becoming God, Vol II
Author:Akil
Every Black High School Student Should Read This Book
Every young Black male or female should read this book. If it were my choice, I would have this book as part of a school curriculum in every Black high school. The reason is because a lot of young Black males who are hard to reach have a militant attitude and this book is able to spark the minds of those militant youth. I love reading this book and I'm always anxious to recommend it to any fellow brother who's in a gang or in prison, because they really really need this information that's in this book
Retails:$14.95
ISBN: 0964818116
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WHO'S LOOKING OUT FOR YOU?
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Author:Bill O'Reilly
From the mega-bestselling author of The O'Reilly Factor and The No Spin Zone, a no-holds-barred expos of the people and institutions who are letting Americans down, and what we should do about it.
Bill O'Reilly is mad as hell , and he's not going to let you take it anymore. In his most powerful and personal book yet, this media powerhouse and unstoppable truth-teller takes on those individuals and institutions in American life who are failing in their duties , big-time. In his inimitable style, mixing wit, pugnacity, and plain common sense, O'Reilly kicks butt and takes (and also names) names , from crooked corporate weasels to venal politicians to lazy and/or politically correct bureaucrats to sexually predatory priests and the Church hierarchy that protects them to a media establishment rife with political bias and economically hooked on violence and smut. At the same time that he calls the famous and powerful to account, he dares to get personal, questioning just how much our closest friends, families, and lovers do look out for us, and delivering a powerful message about personal responsibility and self-reliance in an uncertain world. He forces us to ask just how much genuine altruism is left in a society that thrives on self-indulgence and ruthless competition.
Who's Looking Out for You? is a book that boldly confronts our worst fears and biggest problems in a post-9/11, post-corporate-meltdown world. Its sage, candid advice on regaining control and trust in these troubled times will resonate with the millions of readers and viewers who have come to believe in Bill O'Reilly as the man who speaks for them.
Retails:$24.95
ISBN: 0767913795
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GIVE ME A BREAK
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Author:John Stossel
How I Exposed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media
Retails:$24.95
ISBN: 0060529148
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Audio Cassette
ISBN: 0060585641
Retail Price: $25.95
C&B Price: $17.00
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Audio CD
ISBN: 0060585676
Retail Price: $29.95
C&B Price: $19.00
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CHAKA! THROUGH THE FIRE
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Author:Chaka Khan-Tonya Bolden
Fans have waited years for this memoir and as Chaka states in the book, she's worked on it for years, but was afraid to face all her demons or even remember alot of things, but after persistence from her sister and with the help of others for recollection, decided to finish it in hopes that it would help someone and also to leave something for her children and grandchildren.
Chaka! Through the Fire, chronicles her childhood in Chi-Town, her affiliation with the Black Panthers, Rufus, 2 marriages and 2 children, alcohol and drug abuse, diva antics, and the highs and lows of every realm of her legendary career and life. The language in the book is definitely in your face, no holds barred and simply Chaka, but what can you expect from the WOMAN OF FIRE!
Thanks Chaka for sharing a glimpse into your life. God Bless.
Retails:$23.99
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KOBE BEAN BRYANT
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Author:Loretta Smith
Kobe Bryant's professional, private and personal lives are laid bare in this
penetrating biography that explains how this young, gifted and charming
athlete became involved in a scandal that has rocked the sports world. The
book provides a chronicle of the day-by-day proceedings in his sexual
assault case including the explosive testimony from a Sheriff's detective
during a two-day preliminary hearing. The answer to the controversial
question from Bryant's attorney (Pamela Mackey) of whether the alleged
victim's bruises could have been caused by having sex with 3 men in 3 days
is answered. The author debunks many of the myths and rumors surrounding
the Colorado incident and exposes the truth. Finally, an attorney provides a
legal analysis of the Judge's rulings and Kobe's chances for an acquittal.
Retails:$10.99
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I WILL SURVIVE
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The African American Guide to Healing from Sexual Assault and Abuse
Author:Lori Robinson, Julia A.Boyd (Foreword)
In I Will Survive Lori Robinson has created a valuable resource for African-American survivors of sexual assault (as well as their families, friends, and communities), incorporating personal stories, civil rights history, and a call for community activism. An award-winning journalist and a rape survivor herself, Robinson walks readers through the ways survivors can experience emotional, physical, sexual, and spiritual healing, offering her firsthand knowledge on the particular difficulties African-Americans face on their journey toward recovery. She also explores why black women are more likely to experience sexual crimes—an insightful discussion framed in the context of the American slave system and modern institutionalized racism. This groundbreaking guide for African Americans contains an abundance of culturally specific and compassionate advice and information that includes accessible instruction on navigating police, health care, and legal systems, as well as an extensive resources section. The book’s sympathetic, informative, and ultimately hopeful advice will resonate with African-American survivors and all those who wish to support them.
Retails:$12.95
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MY BROTHER MARTIN
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Author:Christine King Farns, Chris Soentpiet (Illustrator)
Christine King Farris, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s sister, and artist Chris Soentpiet bring us a unique, moving look at the boyhood of a civil rights leader often portrayed as larger than life.With the aid of the Soentpiet's strikingly realistic images, which transport us to the earlier part of the 20th century, Farris describes the mischievous and determined younger days of her brother (called M.L. by the family), before he became the man who "had a dream."
Retails:$17.95
ISBN: 0689843879
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SONJA'S STORY
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Author:Sonja Potgrabienskowa Drake
Five years in Nazi death camps....she learned quickly what she had to do to survive from watching those who didn't.Her father was a wealthy Polish farmer. She has nearly completed all the steps to becoming a Catholic nun when the Nazi's came to Poland. Everyone in the convent was taken to Auschwitz. This is her life story including what happened in the camps and afterwards on the long journey back home thru the Black Forest.
Retails:$10.95
ISBN: 0595160808
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COSBYOLOGY
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Author: Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby draws from his own life to tell these laugh-out loud stories. With a dry wit and uncanny insight, Cosby writes about his first experiences skiing, lying to his mother, and fretting about ungrown hairs. Fans young and old will be eager to add this volume to their collection, while new fans everywhere will delight in this sampling of great comic genius.
Retails:$17.95
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LANGSTON HUGHES
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American Poet
Author: Alice Walker, Catherine Deeter
An illustrated biography of the Harlem poet whose works gave voice to the joy and pain of the black experience in America. When Langston Hughes was a boy, his grandmother told him true stories of how African people were captured in Africa and brought to America enslaved. She told him about their fight for freedom and justice.
Retails:$16.95
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GROWING UP X
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Author:Ilyasah Shabazz
The third of the six daughters of assassinated Black Muslim leader Malcolm X (or Hajj Malik El-Shabazz) and Dr. Betty Dean Sanders, Shabazz reminisces about her childhood and life in the 32 years between her father's being gunned down while speaking at Harlem's Audubon Ballroom in 1965 and her mother's dying of injuries suffered in a house fire in 1997. Two years old when her father died, Ilyasah has only a few remembered moments with him, but she offers much more to correct what she views as the usually fragmented and false understanding of him and his contribution to America and the world. While promoting her father's legacy as a messenger of black self-assurance, self-respect, and self-defense, Ilyasah also argues that great men marry great women, for her true hero is her mother. "Mommy" dominates the narrative, and her often hard-learned lessons carry the character and course of the journey toward the self-identity shared here. This interesting memoir, the first by any of the children of Malcolm X, is valuable for rounding out our understanding of the man and his milieu. Recommended for collections on African American biography.
Retails:$25.00
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BACK IN THE DAY
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My Life and Times with Tupac Shakur
Author:Darrin Keith Bastfield
A vibrant, personal portrait of Tupac Shakur as a high school student at the Baltimore School of the Arts, told by a close friend and classmate.
Retails:$21.95
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THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF QUINCY JONES
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Author: Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones grew up poor on the mean streets of Chicago's south side, brushing against the law and feeling the pain of his mother's descent into madness.But when his father moved the family west to Seattle, he took up the trumpet and was literally saved by music. A prodigy, he played backup for Billie Holiday and toured the world with the Lionel Hampton Band before leaving his teens.
Retails:$26.00
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PATTI'S PEARLS
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Lessons in Living Genuinely,Joyfully,Generously
Author:Patti Labelle-Laura Randolph Lancaster
Patti LaBelle's music will lift you up. And so will the words of her grandmother, mother, aunts, sisters, and friends. Patti's Pearls is not a seven-step self-help book or a list of dictates. Instead, it asks you to look within, to look to your family and loved ones for the "pearls of wisdom" that they have instilled in you since you were a child.
Retails:$19.95
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AALIYAH
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More Than A Woman
Author:Christopher John Farley
Aaliyah Dana Haughton was that music business rarity: a teen idol who transformed herself into a critically acclaimed hip-hop soul artist, a singer who successfully made the transition to actress, and a beautiful woman who never let the trappings of celebrity go to her head. Following her impressive debut at age 14 with the album Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, Aaliyah raised the bar with her hugely influential and bestselling follow-up, One in a Million. She then took her talents to Hollywood, starring in the action thriller Romeo Must Die and the highly anticipated horror film The Queen of the Damned. But soon after the release of her third album in the summer of 2001, Aaliyah's life was tragically cut short in a plane crash.
Retails:$6.99
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